Hot-button issues don't make cut in Legislature

Mar. 8, 2013

Written by

and William Petroski

Today marks a rough halfway point for the Iowa Legislature’s 2013 session, and a key procedural deadline for sifting out proposals lacking the broad support needed for passage into law.

Dozens of bills introduced in the session’s opening weeks will miss today’s so-called “funnel” deadline, ruling them out for further consideration. Among them are several measures long favored by socially conservative Republicans, including restrictions on abortion and a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Medical marijuana bills will be weeded out as well, along with proposed restrictions on cities’ use of traffic enforcement cameras.

But while individual bills containing these proposals won’t advance for debate and passage, the ideas they contain could re-emerge.

The legislative process abounds with tricks and maneuvers for resurrecting once-dead ideas. House and Senate leaders can push bills forward regardless of legislative deadlines, bills can be assigned to committees outside the “funnel” process, and once-rejected ideas can be amended onto surviving legislation.

Here are 10 bills — several each from the Iowa Senate and House — that appear dead for the 2013 legislative session.

Traffic cameras (Senate File 19, House File 106, House File 336)

Lawmakers in the House and Senate introduced a range of bills relating to the traffic cameras that cities and counties use to identify and ticket speeders and red-light runners, including measures banning the cameras entirely, giving the state more authority over their placement and diverting the revenues they generate away from local governments. But none are moving forward. Several failed even to get a subcommittee hearing, and one scheduled for a committee vote in the House on Wednesday was pulled at the last minute.

Medical marijuana (House File 22, Senate File 79)

In both the House and Senate, proposed legislation would have legalized possession and consumption of marijuana for a host of diseases and illnesses and set up a system for dispensaries to regulate the drug’s availability. The measures received hearings in subcommittees of the House Public Safety Committee and Senate Human Resources Committee. But the House panel declined to advance the bill, and although the Senate panel gave initial approval, the chairman said it would not go any further in the process.

Same-sex marriage ban (House Joint Resolution 11)

A constitutional amendment to define marriage as between one man and one woman and barring same-sex couples from marrying did not receive a subcommittee hearing or advance from the House Judiciary Committee, sidelining it for the rest of the legislative session. Such measures must be passed in two consecutive general assemblies and win approval in a statewide vote to become a constitutional amendment.

Telemedicine abortion (House File 173)

The measure sought to prevent doctors from prescribing and administering abortion-causing medication to women in other locations via video conferencing systems. Instead, the law required doctors to meet patients and administer the drug mifepristone in person. The bill cleared a House Human Resources subcommittee, but the chairwoman of the full committee declined to bring it up this week, ensuring it would not advance. Republican leaders said abortion restrictions remained a priority, but that with clear opposition from the Democratic Senate there was no use in advancing the bill.

Death penalty (Senate File 167)

The proposal would have allowed the death penalty for murder cases in which the victim was a minor and the assailant also committed an act of sexual assault or kidnapping. The measure was introduced in response to the deaths of Elizabeth Collins, 8, and Lyric Cook-Morrissey, 10, the cousins from Evansdale who disappeared last July and whose remains were discovered in rural Bremer County last December. The measure had support from 15 Republican senators but did not advance from the Senate Judiciary Committee. The Legislature hasn’t voted on capital punishment since 1995.

Casino smoking ban (Senate Study Bill 1107)

The bill aimed to prohibit smoking in the state’s 18 commercial casinos by removing an exemption to Iowa’s Smokefree Air Act that currently allows the practice. Smoking is generally banned in enclosed public places, including bars and restaurants, and places of employment under the 2008 law. But the state’s gambling industry has strongly opposed extending the ban to their facilities, arguing it would hurt profits, force at least 1,500 layoffs and cost the state $60 million to $80 million in lost tax revenue. The measure stalled in a Senate subcommittee.

Distracted driving (Senate File 33)

A broad proposal to outlaw all forms of distracted driving stalled in a Senate subcommittee amid concerns about its enforcement. The measure would have repealed a state law prohibiting texting while driving and established in its place the more general offense of driving while engaged in a distracting activity, which lawmakers defined as “any activity” that could impair a person’s ability to drive safely. That could include talking on a mobile phone. Offenders would have been guilty of a simple misdemeanor and subject to a $30 fine.

State education chancellor (Senate File 136)

A series of controversies involving the Iowa Board of Regents prompted legislation creating the position of chancellor to administer the state’s higher education system. Some Democrats pressed for the change in response to perceived instances in which the board has “micromanaged” the administration of the three state universities. The most recent example, they said, concerned the regents’ role in a fight over academic freedom at an institute named for U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Ia. The controversy ultimately led Harkin to withdraw a commitment to donate papers from his congressional career to the university. Although it generated some discussion, the bill went nowhere in the Senate.

Stand your ground (House File 57)

The bill allowing individuals to use deadly force with no duty to retreat when threatened or confronted in a public place fizzled this year, after generating fervent discussion and even protest during the 2012 legislative session. The measure gained notoriety following the death of teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida last year. In 2013, the measure drew more than 30 co-sponsors but did not even get a subcommittee hearing, the first step in the legislative process.

E-Verify for employers (House File 368)

The bill would have barred employers from hiring immigrants who are not legally present or authorized to work in the United States and required them to use E-Verify, the federal work-eligibility database. Employers using E-Verify would have been protected from liability if one of their workers was later found to be ineligible to work, while employers found to have hired undocumented workers that failed to use E-Verify would have faced license suspensions or revocations. A key lawmaker said the bill failed to advance because of concerns about the implementation costs for business and government.